Dappletail
Dappletail :Dapplepaw is a Thunderclan Apprentice with Windflight as her mentor. :She makes her first appearance when she hears Patchkit and Leopardkit outside of the apprentice den with Bluekit and Snowkit. Bluekit notes that Dapplepaw's pelt is very sleek, and that she's very big, even bigger than Patchkit and Leopardkit, unlike herself. She comments on how Whitepaw is annoyed about cleaning out the nursery because the kits can't keep a clean nest and to remember to show the kits the dirtplace. When Bluekit tells her that she and her sister will soon be able to now, she replies saying she will tell Whitepaw later, with her whiskers twitching with amusement. :She is confused when Patchkit brings up to her that she made a promise to take them to the sandy hollow. She objects, telling him that she would only take him and his sister as far as the ravine. They are all then seen leaving together. :She and Whitepaw are seen play-fighting often, such as when they were fighting over a good seat on the tree stump to listen to Patchkit and Leopardkit’s apprentice ceremony. Once when the two are fighting, she teases Whitepaw about how Patchkit can do better than Whitepaw. :Dapplepaw is later shown as a warrior, now Dappletail, still being Whitepaw, now White-eye's, best friend. Since she has received her warrior name, Bluekit observes that she often acts as if she was already Clan deputy. When Goosefeather interprets danger from Windclan, she is one of the cats eager to fight. She receives pointers from Stormtail before the fight, during which he comes to her defense and aids her when she is injured. :Dappletail receives her first apprentice, Goldenpaw. She is very patient with her apprentice and comforts Goldenpaw when she's nervous. She sometimes trains Goldenpaw with Bluepaw. Her apprentice later becomes a warrior with the name Goldenflower. :Dappletail gets a seed in her eye and goes to see Featherwhisker. Thrushpelt takes Goldenpaw out for training that day. :The Clan later suspects that because of all the time she spends with Stormtail, they are waiting for an announcement of new kits. But Bluefur then remembers that Featherwhisker said that not all she-cats can have kits, and she assumes that Dappletail is one of them. :Later when Bluestar talks about her Clan at the end of the book, she comments that Dappletail has moved into the elders' den with her friend White-eye, now One-eye. :Firestar’s Quest : :Dappletail helps to bring Willowpelt’s body into the clearing for her vigil. She strokes her fur with one forepaw, expressing deep grief that such a young, beloved cat has to join StarClan so soon. She comments that she should have lived longer, and had much more to give to her Clan. :Before Firestar leaves to help rebuild Skyclan, he sees One-Eye and Dappletail sitting together and whispering, casting swift glances up at him. :Into The Wild : :Dappletail is first seen when Graypaw takes Firepaw on his tour of the ThunderClan camp. When they come to the elders' den, Firepaw meets Dappletail along with the other elders. Dappletail is fairly nice towards Firepaw when he meets her. Smallear then wonders out loud when Bluestar will choose a new deputy. Dappletail, along with her friend One-eye, remembers the season many moons ago when Bluestar had become deputy herself, and Dappletail remarks that Bluestar had also lost her kits then. :At the Gathering, she is seen with One-eye and Smallear, but they go off to talk to other elders from other Clans. :Fire and Ice : When ThunderClan is discussing the Gathering back at their camp, Willowpelt asks why Shadowclan and Riverclan would want WindClan's hunting grounds when they have plenty of territory of their own. Dappletail and Frostfur then point out that some RiverClan elders at the Gathering spoke of Twolegs taking over part of their river and scaring the fish away. Forest of Secrets :While Cloudkit is tending to the elders, Dappletail tells Fireheart that he is doing a great job and is very efficient for a young kit. Dappletail seems to enjoy having Cloudkit in the elders' den. :Yellowfang later goes and tells Fireheart that Smallear told her that he had aching joints because of the damp bedding Cloudkit was bringing in. When Fireheart goes to ask the elders about it, Dappletail defends Cloudkit by saying that Smallear complains all the time, and by pointing out that Cloudkit was only a kit and is not experienced. Fireheart is surprised that Cloudkit had managed to win the elder's sympathy and respect. :Later, when Cloudkit is made an apprentice, it is noted that she and her fellow elders were the first to congratulate the new apprentice, acting warm and welcoming. :Rising Storm : :Dappletail discusses with the other elders about what StarClan will think of ThunderClan after Tigerclaw turned against them and Fireheart having been named deputy after moonhigh. :She is later seen with One-eye padding away from the nursery after seeing Willowpelt's new born kits, their eyes soft with affection and warmth. She is later seen sitting with Smallear and One-eye near the fallen oak, sharing tongues with them. :A Dangerous Path : :She tells Speckletail that Snowkit is deaf, but Speckletail stays in denial. She tells Fireheart about her first litter; one of her kits was white with blue eyes, and was born deaf. He had disappeared at three moons, and the Clan thought a fox must have gotten him. She also states that most kits born like that are deaf. :Lostface is later seen grooming her for ticks. When Fireheart later realizes that the dog pack will be coming to the camp, he tells the Clan they must evacuate the camp. Dappletail asks where a good place would be that they should go to, to which he replies that they will go to Sunningrocks. :The Darkest Hour : :Dappletail flanks Speckletail along with Smallear when they return to the camp after the dogs are gone. She approaches the Highrock with them to share tongues with Bluestar for the last time after she drowns in the gorge, with the dogs. :She welcomes Firestar when he visits the elders den, telling him that he is always very welcome, while Smallear complains of getting no sleep. Firestar later tells Speckletail that she must stay and take care of the other elders and kits during the battle of Bloodclan, also mentioning that Dappletail's getting very frail. :Midnight : :Dappletail is now the oldest cat in ThunderClan. Brambleclaw sees her curled up asleep in the elders' den as he enters the den to help Squirrelpaw with her duties. :Cinderpelt later instructs Leafpaw to take a poppy seed to Dappletail, as her teeth are aching very badly and she's having trouble sleeping, and that would help her sleep. Squirrelpaw later mentions to Brambleclaw that Dappletail wants a vole to eat. :Moonrise : During the prey famine, Dappletail starts to lose her mind with starvation and begins to eat a rabbit that has been poisoned by Twolegs, even after being told by Leafpaw that it is not safe to eat. She snarls at Firestar when he pushes her gently away from it. Soon after, she gets a bellyache from the poison, and dies after she does not respond to Cinderpelt’s herbs. Starlight Dappletail appears as a StarClan warrior when Leafpaw discovers the Moonpool. It is said that she has returned to her calm and gentle state, compared to her personality before she died. This means that she now lives in peace in StarClan. It also mentions her as a pretty tortoiseshell, which means that she may have become young again in StarClan. Secrets of the Clans Dappletail gets annoyed when Sandstorm looks in the elders' den during the tour of the old ThunderClan camp. Sandstorm asks her, "Don't you have an apprentice to torment?" and leaves. Code of the Clans Dappletail is seen as a young warrior with her friend White-eye. They insist on trying fish, so they try to steal fish from RiverClan. White-eye falls in the water and Dappletail jumps in to save her until Hailstar, the RiverClan leader, rescues her. Pinestar, the ThunderClan leader, and a patrol arrive and suggest that Hailstar ask her and White-eye to eat the fish. The two try the fish, saying that it's disgusting and realize that ThunderClan cats should only eat ThunderClan prey, while Hailstar pretends to be shocked. They then leave fishing to RiverClan.